RXTE Observation of PSR B1706-44 and Implications for Theoretical Models of Pulsar Emission

Abstract

We report on results of an observation with the Rossi X-Ray Timing Explorer (RXTE) of PSR B1706-44 with a live time of 132 ks, to search for pulsed X-ray emission. PSR B1706-44 is a radio and high-energy gamma-ray pulsar (detected by EGRET), but no pulsed emission has been detected in the X-ray band. Since most of the other known gamma-ray pulsars emit pulsed X-rays, it is expected that PSR B1706-44 would also be an X-ray pulsar. However, while the ROSAT PSPC detected a source at the pulsar position, it did not detect pulsations, giving a pulsed fraction upper limit of 18%. The RXTE observations to search for modulation at the pulsar period were carried out in November 1996 and May 1997, during the low states of the nearby X-ray binary 4U1705-44. No significant modulation was detected at the pulsar period, giving an upper limit of 10^{-6} photons cm^{-2} s^{-1} keV^{-1} in the interval 9 keV < E < 18.5keV. The implications of this upper limit of the pulsed flux from the RXTE observation, taken together with multiband observations of this pulsar are examined in the context of theoretical models of pulsar particle acceleration zones.